01. Born to suffer

[Intro - spoken male] What once was is now dust in the breeze Fate locked our freedom, threw away the keys We’re tangled tight in time’s unyielding thread A leaf adrift, no shore where we can rest our head [Verse 1] I was a kid with a laugh that outshone the sun A thousand tiny flames burning bright in my lung No script, no rhyme, just a heart unconfined The world was my jungle, no shadow could steal my shine Mama’s arms were my fortress, my sister my compass, my guide Our small house hummed with love, no price tag could buy that kind [Chorus] Born just to suffer, scars map my broken soul The world’s a frostbitten hole, will I ever feel whole? Born just to suffer, pain’s my constant shadow, my ride But somewhere beyond the dark, maybe a ladder still climbs [Instrumental Chorus] [Verse 2] A Tuesday morning, phone shrilled like a warning shot “We’re sorry” — the words dropped, my breath forgot how to stop Mama and sister torn from the frame, gone in a blink The lights that lit my life, snuffed out before I could think The street went quiet, but my mind was a hurricane’s roar No shelter from the rain, no warm door to walk through anymore Their smiles in photos flicker like ghosts in the gloom The ache in my chest drowned out every other sound in the room [Chorus] Born just to suffer, scars map my broken soul The world’s a frostbitten hole, will I ever feel whole? Born just to suffer, pain’s my constant shadow, my ride But somewhere beyond the dark, maybe a ladder still climbs [Instrumental Chorus] [Verse 3] Dad said “we’ll fight through this, son, keep your chin held high” Then he bailed, left me with strangers, no goodbye The new woman hated his ghost, hated me by proxy I was a crack in her perfect life, a flaw she couldn’t box me He packed his bags, didn’t even glance back A cold empty room was the only thing he left in his track I was the leftover, the part he didn’t want to keep A ghost in a half-lived life, drowning in the deep [Instrumental Chorus] [Chorus] Born just to suffer, scars map my broken soul The world’s a frostbitten hole, will I ever feel whole? Born just to suffer, pain’s my constant shadow, my ride But somewhere beyond the dark, maybe a ladder still climbs (Instrumental Solo with banjo, e-gitarre, violine) [Chorus] Born just to suffer, scars map my broken soul The world’s a frostbitten hole, will I ever feel whole? Born just to suffer, pain’s my constant shadow, my ride But somewhere beyond the dark, maybe a ladder still climbs [Outro]